Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	christian_n	zeal_n	zealous_a	71	3	9.0806	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A25829	A tryall of faith, or, The woman of Canaan on Math. 15, 21, 22, 23, 24 : together with the souls sure anchor-hold, on Heb. 6, 19 : with the wisdome of timely remembring our creator, on Eccles. 12, 1 : in severall sermons / by Timothy Armitage.	Armitage, Timothy, d. 1655.	1661 (1661)	Wing A3704; ESTC R26657	267,236	470

how they set up their own rules above Gods Rules which is a provocation to Christ and he will not bear with such you may read the second and third verses and so to the end of the seventh verse In vain sayes Christ do you worship me teaching for doctrine the commandements of men So that the occasion of Christs removing from these parts of Judea which were near to Jerusalem was the exalting their own traditions and making them equall with Gods Commandements It affords something to us for our instruction which is this That when a people or any soul shall exalt their own traditions their own inventions and make them equal or set them above the Commandements and Rules that Christ hath given his people to walk by Christ will not afford his presence to such a people Christ will certainly depart from such a soul or people For the truth is there is little hope that there should be any good done by such a people when they decline the Rule and set up something of their own there is little hope that the word of Christ should do good among such a people Therefore Christ will withdraw from them as he did from these Scribes and Pharisees and so will Christ withdraw his special presence from a people that shall set up their own inventions For it is a mighty provocation to Christ First of all when a people shall exalt their own inventions above the Rule that Christ hath given his people to walk by the minds of such a people are blinded and darkened and their hearts are hardened against the Truths of God therefore there is little hope of such a people I say mens own inventions thus exalted and lift up above Gods Rule it blinds the mind and hardens the heart against Christ and the things of Christ it is a making to a mans self a graven Image Whatsoever a man shall bring in of his own as a rule to walk by and to worship by he makes that an image to himself now they that make graven Images are like to them sayes the Psalmist They have eyes and see not God gives them up to blindness declining Gods Rule and Christs Institution it will blind them and harden them against the Truths of Christ Secondly When as men shall exalt their own inventions the heart is so filled with them that there is no room for Christ and for the most part there is in such a soul a kind of loathing the Truths of Christ Whereever you find mens inventions exalted there you shall find a kind of loathing in such a soul of the pure and sincere truths of the Gospel the bread of life is no longer sweet with them and the water of life hath no rellish with them and when it comes to this Christ will not stay but withdraws his spiritual presence from them as he did his bodily presence from the Scribes and Pharisees Thirdly Christ will withdraw from such a people because for the most part they are desperate enemies and persecutors of Christ and of his People and of his Truths So it was with the Scribes and Pharisees Christ had not such enemies in all the world as they were because they were most zealous for their own inventioons they declined the Rule and set up their own rule and therefore they prove desperate enemies to Christ Paul makes an acknowledgement of it when Christ came to open his eyes and doth tell you that that was the cause of his driving on that trade of persecuting the Saints with so much earnestness because he was so zealous for the traditions of men in Phil. 3. 6. You may see there what he sayes was the cause of his persecuting the Saints Concerning zeal persecuting the Church touching the righteousness which is in the law blameless And so in Gal. 1. 13 14. For ye have heard of my conversation in time past in the Jews Religion how that beyond measure I persecuted the Church of God and wasted it Ver. 14. And profited in the Jews religion above many my equals in mine own nation being more zealous of the traditions of my fathers The zeal which he had for the traditions of men was that which carried him on to persecute the Christians with so much violence and many times it is so that they which do most exalt their own traditions they become very zealous in persecuting the Saints and Truths of Christ for it is natural for a man to become zealous for that which is his own that which is of the flesh that which is a kin to the flesh the flesh will be zealous for Now all traditions they are born of the flesh they are the off-spring of mans own brain and therefore upon that account men are many times very zealous for them to the persecuting of the Saints of God Now upon this account the Lord Christ will not afford his presence with such as lay aside his Rule for they many times prove the greatest persecuters of Christ and his people Fourthly Christ will not continue and afford his presence with such a people as set up their own inventions and traditions in the place of God's Rule because they do arrogate that to themselves which is Christs due he is the great Prophet and given to instruct his people to make known the way of life and salvation and it belongs to Christ to give a rule for his people to walk by And therefore when men shall set up their rule in the place of Christs Rule what do they but take the place of Christ the office of Christ and turn Christ out of his office and set themselves in Christs chair Now this is a great provocation to Christ and that which Christ will not endure but depart from such a people Fifthly They that do exalt their own inventions and traditions in the place of Christs Rule for the most part they place their righteousness in those very traditions of their own which is a great provocation unto Christ for you may observe this in the Pharisees they that were so zealous for their own inventions and would not submit to the Rule of Christ they would not submit to the Righteousness of Christ but they placed their righteousness in their traditions in their inventions a kind of volluntary humility they had and willingly submitted to their traditions and by so doing did overturn the righteousness of Christ placing their righteousness in their own observations it was that which made them not to submit to the righteousness of God Let a man do never so much let him walk never so strictly let him set up the straitest rule to himself to walk by though a man do never so much though he afflict his body never so much if this tend to draw off the soul from the righteousness of Christ that a man should look upon this as his commendation before God and place this in the room of Christs righteousness as all do that set up their own traditions they

take heed that we do not blot out those names that the Lord hath put into the Covenant But it may be you will say further by way of Objection If children belong to the Covenant of God and the Covenant that the children of believing Parents is under is a Covenant of grace of necessity they must be saved Shall they be under a Covenant of grace and not be saved I answer Some may be under a Covenant of grace and not saved I say visibly in respect of the outward dispensation they may be under the Covenant of grace and yet never attaine to life and salvation for when as we do Baptize those who do make a profession of their faith surely we look upon them as Believers and such as are in Covenant with God and therefore we Baptize them because believers and so in Covenant with God But now is it not possible nay is it not ordinary for many who make such a profession of Christ and are baptized upon that profession to fall off and to come short of life and salvation And yet I hope you will say the Ordinance was not disorderly administred though they that did make a profession do fall off so though all children of believing parents do not attain to eternal life yet the Ordinance is no more unduly administred to them then to others for both Professors and children may be under the outward administration of the Covenant which being may give right to an outward Ordinance and yet not be saved Object But you will say How shall we judge of any but by their profession that they make of Christ we cannot own any but such as make a profession and children cannot make a Profession I answer We must judge as God judgeth and own as God owns take heed that we do not disown what God owns and if God will own the children of believing parents visibly and put them under an outward administration of the Covenant surely there is no danger of owning where God owns God's owning is a surer ground for us to go upon then any man's profession Now God seems to own the seed of believers by his gracious promise Nay let it be considered those Prophesies that speak of the latter dayes and of the Kingdom of Christ and the glory that shall be in those dayes they speak of this that God will then more abundantly and visibly own the seed of his people God will own them and God will bless them Isa 65. 23. They shall not labour in vain nor bring forth for trouble for they are the seed of the blessed of the Lord and their off-spring with them When the Jews shall come in they shall be called the blessed of the Lord and their off-spring with them their seed shall be blessed according to Abrahams Covenant when they shall come in again I know there are many gracious hearts that cannot believe this truth and will not till Christ comes to reveal it but if the Lord hath handed in any beam of light shut it not out This have I spoken because it is in my way to shew you who are children But in the second place Who are Dogs You see who are to be accounted children who are Dogs That must be opened too and let it not be offensive because it is in the Text. First Dogs in Scripture are taken somtimes for all the Nations of the Gentiles all the people of the world except the seed of Abraham were called Dogs they were without the Covenant strangers to the Commonwealth of Israel all we and our fathers all the Nations of the Gentiles time was that the Jewes only were the children and we and all Nations were called Dogs But secondly All wicked men in Scriptute phrase they are called Dogs The Scripture doth brand some sort of wicked men and some degrees of wicked persons by this name In especial manner the Lord looks upon some wicked men as dogs Who are they First Such as give up themselves to gross and notorious wickedness such as are openly scandalous vile and prophane Rev. 22. 15. For without are dogs sorcerers and whoremongers and murderers and Idolaters and whosoever loveth and maketh a lye Without are dogs and he sheweth who those dogs are that are without that shall be shut out of the City when the new Jerusalem shall come down from heaven these are they that shall not have a name in that City vile sinners they are called dogs But secondly such as do oppose the Gospel of Christ such as do reject the Gospel and oppose the Truths of the Gospel such as come to hear for that end that they may snarl against the word the Spirit of the Lord calls them dogs Phil. 3. 2. Beware of dogs beware of evil workers beware of the concision the Apostle bids the Christians beware of them beware of dogs they that bite and snarl and set themselves to oppose the Truths of the Gospel the Spirit of the Lord calls them dogs Thirdly They who do reject those wholsome reproofs and counsels and exhortations that the Lord sends them by any of his servants such as scorn reproof and hate reproof that are ready to fly in the face of him that shall reprove them when they do wickedly What have you to do with me meddle with your own matters and I will not be reproved by such a one as you are the word of the Lord calls such persons dogs they are vile creatures Matth. 7. 6. Give not that which is holy unto the dogs neither cast ye your pearls before swine lest they trample them under their feet and turn again and rent you See here what Christ speaks Exhortations and reproofs they are not to be cast before some men such as have often rejected reproofs and will not hear the Lord looketh upon them as dogs and they shall die in thei● wickedness Fourthly The Scripture calls those dogs tha● somtime have made a profession of Christ and have turned away from their profession such 〈◊〉 have seemed somtimes to be very forward an● very zealous hot it may be in their youth after ●ward they fall off and have lost their fruit and have lost their profession and it may be not 〈◊〉 much as Leaves upon them but are turned agai● to their old wayes 2 Pet. 2. 22. But it is hapn● vnto them according to the true Proverb the dog ●turned to his own vomit again and the Sow that wa● washed to her wallowing in the myre they have turn'd to their old course again they seeme● somtimes to cast out sin Ah! But they have returned to it again Such persons are vile and the holy Ghost calls them dogs Fiftly Persecuters of Christ of his Truth and people they are called dogs such as do not only bark against Christ but even bite and rend his people Why the Lord looks upon them as vile creatures they are dogs in God's account what-ever they are in the worlds and so Christ calls them by David